10-years experience with the Athero-Express study

From cross-sectional studies we have learned that composition of atherosclerotic plaques differs, and that thrombosis on top of an inflammatory lipid rich plaque is a frequently observed pathological substrate of a cerebral or coronary event. Atherosclerosis develops over decades which hampers human studies on the natural history of the diseases. Therefore, the predictive value of atherosclerotic plaque composition for development of an adverse cardiovascular event is not clear. The elucidation of markers for atherosclerotic disease progression is essential to identify patients at high risk for vascular events, to refine treatment allocation and to serve as surrogate endpoints in pharmaceutical studies. The Athero-Express study is a large scale vascular biobank that collects vascular specimens including a clinical follow-up. This study design allows the prospective study of the local atherosclerotic plaque in relation to future local and systemic vascular outcome. The readout of the study can be assessed in terms of histology as well as RNA or protein level. This paper aims to give an overview of the results of the Athero-Express biobank since its initiation in 2002. We will also discuss the clinical implications and future directions in biobanking research.